Master Gardeners: The advantages of organic gardening

Sometimes, we tend to think that as an individual, what we do on our own property is not important. However, today, with our natural areas shrinking more and more each year, we realize that what each homeowner does can actually make a tremendous difference. Using your property wisely is referred to as sustainable gardening.

The idea of sustainable gardening is to reduce our use of harmful chemicals, pesticides and fossil fuels and at the same time decrease the outputs that clog up our landfills, pollute the air, and cause chemical run-off.

Deciding to go organic is a first step toward sustainable gardening. The definition of organic gardening involves the elimination of chemicals as much as possible, and the reuse of the natural resources your property produces.

MRGICH

There are many advantages to not only growing an organic garden, but to organically managing your entire property.

Healthier soil

The number one advantage of organic gardening is healthier soil. Billions of microscopic organisms live in your soil. When you return the leaves, grass clippings, plant trimmings, garden and kitchen waste to your soil in the form of compost, you are feeding these organisms, thus enriching your soil. When the soil is healthy, the microbes and earthworms interact with the plants to produce healthy, vigorous growth. Plant roots will be deeper and more efficient. Your plants will be better able to fight off diseases and pests.

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Fewer pests

Did you know that 97 percent of the insect world is considered beneficial to your garden? Most insects are carnivorous meaning they eat meat in the form of other insects. Left alone in an organic garden, the good guys will generally take care of the bad guys. In addition to eating other insects, some beneficial insects are parasitic. For example, a parasitic wasp will lay eggs under the skin of a tomato horn worm. If you have ever seen that big, green worm with small white attachments, you have seen a worm being eaten alive. Don't kill it. The hornworm is basically already dead, and the wasp larvae will develop to destroy more hornworms.

More birds

Do you enjoy seeing birds in your garden? Did you know that their primary diet consists of insects? Even birds that eat fruits, berries, and seeds feed their babies insects. Hummingbirds rely on insects exclusively to feed their young, and they use spider silk to make their nests more elastic. Bluebirds enjoy wide open meadows and even lawns where they can survey the area and find insects for dinner. If your lawn is chemically treated, and they cannot find food for themselves or their babies, the birds won't be hanging around.

Save money, reduce waste

As plants grow, they pull nutrition from the soil. If you throw your grass and plant clippings in the trash, you are throwing away natural fertilizer that can enrich your soil. When you recycle all your garden and kitchen waste through composting, then spread it over your garden, you reduce the need to buy fertilizer, and you greatly reduce the bulk waste that is sent to our landfills. Allowing your grass clippings to stay on the lawn and mowing over your leaves in the fall, are both examples of fertilizing your lawn organically.

Safeguard children and pets

How many different chemicals do you use on your lawn and in your garden? Read the labels. Each one cautions you to follow the directions exactly and to protect yourself from touching the liquid or breathing in the dust. Each one claims to be safe IF the directions are correctly followed. Are you as careful and exact as you should be? Did you know that there are organic products available for almost every purpose for which you would buy chemicals? If you feel the need to use something, you may want to give one of them a try. Remember that each time you spray some type of insecticide, you may be endangering the desirables as well as the undesirables. If you need help with figuring what product to use, how to use it, when to use it, and how much of it to use, give the Penn State Extension Office a call. Check the address and phone number at the end of this article.

My grandchildren love to play in my garden and roll down the hill in our lawn. I feel very good about watching them enjoy themselves without worrying that they are coming in contact with poison. I also like the idea that by gardening organically, I am gardening as Nature intended and not contributing to a growing problem.

Got A Gardening Question? The Penn State Master Gardeners may be able to help. Our Hotline is open April through September on Mondays and Fridays, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Call 717-334-6271 or take your samples for diagnosis to Penn State Cooperative Extension of Adams County, 670 Old Harrisburg Road, Gettysburg.

Barbara Mrgich is a Penn State Master Gardener from Adams County. Penn State Cooperative Extension of Adams County is at 670 Old Harrisburg Road, Suite 204, Gettysburg, call 717-334-6271.

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